The Earth Fights Back

Chapter 2

11 2 obuh came out of king Awobua’s inner sanctum sweating and looking terribly shaken, and virtually frothing in the mouth. A mad dog would have learnt something from him about frothing techniques. He had just been through a very rough time and was almost regretting the fact that he was senior minister and the direct contact with the king. He had never imagined that things could come to the level where the king would actually attempt to smite him, but there it was. He was simply fortunate that he had been alone with the king when this disgraceful occurrence took place. He was considered in Mungongoh with much dignity and respect and an attempt by the king to actually inflict such corporal punishment on him would have brought down his mighty image to the level of the down trodden. But then, the dwarfs were present. He was certain he had noticed something like glee on their faces when the king had administered physical violence on him. Although they were considered dumb, the dwarfs could speak and have fun when given the opportunity. This incidence would possibly be much ventilated within their circles, accompanied with lots of ridicule and laughter. The only good thing, Mobuh thought was that they never mixed with regular Mungongoh citizens. The possibility that news about the incidence would cross to Mungongoh citizens was thus very slim. He was thinking seriously on the new situation as he entered his spacious office and sat down. Maybe it would be better to brainstorm with Itoff and a few top members before taking the issue to the IRDI. But then, Itoff had failed him woefully in previous attempts. M 12 The next obvious thing was to bring down his anxiety with a few large gulps of the expensive strong drink he always kept for such incidences. During the period of inactivity on issues concerning the earth, things had been calm and there was never any risk of being confronted with royal anger. He had virtually ruled Mungongoh, as the king had spent most of his time, mulling over the delay in taking over the earth imposed by circumstances beyond their control. Mobuh took enough time to calm down completely and look dignified. When he thought he had regained full composure, he decided to summon Itoff after all. Two heads work better than one and he needed support to plan the next step. He would go through some earth scenes on the TV console and reserve a few for his encounter with Itoff. Mobuh took another stiff drink and switched on his earth monitor. A scene in Afghanistan came up where a suicide bomber had just taken down ten relief workers along with him. In another scene in Iraq another suicide bomber had put an end to the sinful lives of fifteen Christians, causing much grief and mourning. ‘Serves them right for shunning the great cause of Islam and embracing Christianity’ the maniac as he pulled the trigger was going to die along with the infidels. He was rather dreaming of the virgins who would receive him. As Mobuh continued to watch, a scene in America showed a serious storm that was raging and sweeping down houses along its path. Somewhere in Japan an earthquake was wrecking havoc, accompanied by a horrifying scene of mangled bodies and extensive destruction. It was actually a bloody scene. Out in East Africa, wild animals had gone on the rampage. While lions, cheetahs and leopards were feasting on some villagers, rhinos, and elephants were stampeding through other villages, goring and crushing every living thing in heir path. Farms and village houses were all rendered 13 useless in their wake. In other corners of Africa, civil wars were eminent as incumbent presidents were clinging to power though rejected by the people. So much was going wrong with the world, and if Mungongoh could push all these disasters to the absolute limit, King Awobua would achieve his life’s goal. But then, the earthlings were doing quite much to counter all forms of disaster. Mobuh sighed and switched over to another scene. A cathedral in Asuncion was jammed full with faithful praying to God to rid the world of all calamities. Up in the USA, several crises meetings were holding to check various forms of trouble ranging from terrorists to natural disasters. There were meetings comprised of experts in various fields while other...